Location:
Southern South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Argentina and Peru

Geographic coordinates:
30 00 S, 71 00 W

Map references:
South America

Area:
total: 756,102 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 743,812 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 12,290 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
note: includes Easter Island (Isla de Pascua) and Isla Sala y Gomez
country comparison to the world: 39

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than twice the size of Montana
Area comparison map: slightly smaller than twice the size of Montana

Land boundaries:
total: 7,801 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
border countries (3): Argentina 6,691 km, Bolivia 942 km, Peru 168 km

Coastline:
6,435 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
contiguous zone: 24 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - contiguous zone country ranks ]
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - exclusive economic zone country ranks ]
continental shelf: 200/350 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - continental shelf country ranks ]

Climate:
temperate; desert in north; Mediterranean in central region; cool and damp in south
More Climate Details

Terrain:
low coastal mountains, fertile central valley, rugged Andes in east

Elevation:
mean elevation: 1,871 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Nevado Ojos del Salado 6,880 m

Natural resources:
copper, timber, iron ore, nitrates, precious metals, molybdenum, hydropower

Land use:
agricultural land: 21.1% arable land 1.7%; permanent crops 0.6%; permanent pasture 18.8%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 21.9%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 57% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
11,100 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population - distribution:
90% of the population is located in the middle third of the country around the capital of Santiago; the far north (anchored by the Atacama Desert) and the extreme south are relatively underpopulated

Natural hazards:
severe earthquakes; active volcanism; tsunamis
volcanism: significant volcanic activity due to more than three-dozen active volcanoes along the Andes Mountains; Lascar (5,592 m), which last erupted in 2007, is the most active volcano in the northern Chilean Andes; Llaima (3,125 m) in central Chile, which last erupted in 2009, is another of the country's most active; Chaiten's 2008 eruption forced major evacuations; other notable historically active volcanoes include Cerro Hudson, Calbuco, Copahue, Guallatiri, Llullaillaco, Nevados de Chillan, Puyehue, San Pedro, and Villarrica

Environment - current issues:
widespread deforestation and mining threaten natural resources; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
the longest north-south trending country in the world, extending across 39 degrees of latitude; strategic location relative to sea lanes between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Atacama Desert - the driest desert in the world - spreads across the northern part of the country; the small crater lake of Ojos del Salado is the world's highest lake (at 6,390 m)